Chapter 2

Like a Rat

 

 

My head throbbed with every beat my heart took, and it was hard to breathe. And I still had that familiar feeling. You know, when you see someone you think you should know, and you try to figure out what their name is? It was like that. I felt like...I had been here before. And, given the state of the world...I very well could have been.

I tried to lift my arms, but everything fealt so heavy. Like I was weighted or tied down. I could barely even move my neck, and when I did, my head swam and my breathing became ragged and thick with phlegm. I couhged and tried to spit the fluid from my mouth. It splattered against something, and dripped back onto my face.

My whole body tensed. I was inside something. Opening my eyes, panic and adrenaline flooded my body. My arms and legs were tied down with heave leather straps, and I was encased in a long, tightly closed plastic tube, which, in turn, was floating in water.

Through the plastic and water, I could see someone moving. I saw them fiddle with something outside the tank I was in, and pain seared my body. Looking around as best I could, I saw that every major vein and all my larger muscles had white tubes....IV's implanted in them. Some sort of blue liquid was being pumped into my body. It burned. God, did it ever burn. The pain threatened to wash over me and cause me to black out, but I couldn't let it. I needed to figure this out. I needed answers.

I didn't know how I was going to get them, being stuck in this plastic coffin, but I had to use something to stay concious. Just when I thought I couldn't bear it any longer, there was a jolt, and the pain stopped. Slowly, I was being raised up from the water tank to a point where I could see clearly through the plastic cylinder I was in. Staring back at me was one of the most beautiful women I had ever seen.

Her hair was long and red, and here eyes were the most vivid green. They made mine look brown by comparison. She smiled, her red lips parting, showing a major contrast to her pale complexion. There was...no warth in that smile though. Quite the contrary. As the tube opened up, she shoved a syringe into my neck. Immediately, everything below my neck went numb. I was paralyzed.

"Now, I wasn't expecting to see you back so soon, Jacob." She said, in a lovely, Irish accent. "It seems we went a bit to far with that last run."

"What are you talking about?" I managed to say through the oxygen tube she was tearing from my mouth.

She smiled that cold, dark smile again. "It's quite simple really. You're our test subject."

My eyes narrowed "Test subject? What do you mean?"

She leaned over top of me, "You really don't remember? Well, that's good I suppose. Means we can keep going." She brushed my hair out of my face, as best she could given it was plastered with sweat.

"You see, Mr. Vecks, we've has been experimenting with a new technology. I've sure you remember your encounter in the house in Nova York at least."

I blinked. "Clones."

She nodded. "Quite correct. You see, we've been trying to perfect a cloning procedure for years now. One that would enable us to select the best stock from the human race, and make unparalled soldiers, labourers, police, firemen, you name it. Leaving the rest of us to persue scientific research. Art. Technology. And, we perfected that ability to clone about 3 years ago.

"This is the ineteresting part though. You see, we discovered that when a person comes face to face with his or her own clone, they suffer an accute mental breakdown, it causes them to immediately cast all caution to the wind and commit suicide in the quickest manner available at that particular moment. We don't know why it does this...it just does."

I bit down hard, trying to choke back another cough as my throat seeped from having the breathing tube forced down it. "What does that have to do with me?"

"Ah, well now. Here's the key. You see, Jacob. You don't.....react like the rest. Your immediate reaction is almost the same, and, to be honest, I feared for the longest time it would be. But then something changes. You start to....think differently. Your mind switches to some sort of back up, or overdrive that stops you going completely insane, and allows you to continue to function. Tonight was one of the few nights we ended the programme early to prevent you killing yourself."

"So, you're saying I'm some kind of lab rat?"

"Yes, Mr. Vecks. That's exactly what I'm saying. You're going to help us unlock the reasons to your reaction so we, in turn, can unlock it in whoever we choose to clone at any given time. Preventing the unfortunate deaths of real people. You, are going to help us discover a cure to this so-called...'Vecks Syndrome.'

I spluttered. "Not gonna happen. Let me go. You can't hold a Watcher and think the government is going to let you live."

She laughed as she stood up and grabbed another needle. She shoved it into my neck and I began to feel drowsy again. "Oh, my dear dear Jacob. What makes you think you have a choice in the matter?" My eyes felt heavy, and I drifted off to sleep.

The alarm buzzed, and so did my head. Man, that whiskey I drank last night was really hitting me hard. Still, I better get up, and get ready for my next mission. I couldn't shake this weird feeling. Like...what I was doing was wrong. I chalked it up to that dream I'd had last night. Something about a woman...and a tube of water? Well, whatever. I got up, and started off to the bathroom to shower.